Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I said in my statement, my questions are today for the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources. As I said in my statement today, I’m amazed at how few of the concerns, so clearly expressed at the hearings, have been reflected in the proponent’s closing letter to the environment board. The commentary persists in the delusion that this is a remediation rather than a stabilization. Its silence on major concerns almost amounts to contempt towards the input of organizations and individuals. This government signed the letter, so I ask, given the passion and details...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The environmental assessment hearings for the Giant Mine Project were held in September. The Mackenzie Valley Environmental Review Board heard testimony on the plan to stabilize the vast stores of arsenic and conduct limited surface remediation. On the first night of public presentations alone, 50 people sat through a 45-minute power outage to share their concerns. Seventeen people spoke, most staying well past 11:00 p.m. People care deeply about the Giant Mine cleanup.

Based on my observations, people spoke of the lack of a funded perpetual care plan, lack of a legally...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have raised my hand a couple of times for the tabling of documents, so I request that we return to item 14, tabling of documents.

---Unanimous consent granted

In most of our communities there is no private market for housing. This is a reality. We can say that if a household makes over a certain amount of money, they should go to the private market to build, but we know that’s not happening. In large part, that’s due to the basic lack of local capacity to construct housing. Again, reality.

Can the Minister say how this lack of local private capacity issue is considered in the equation of setting eligibility levels and whether this is under review?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are for the Minister of the NWT Housing Corporation. I was asking the Minister questions last week regarding the large number of home ownership units remaining vacant because people don’t fit program criteria. At my constituency meeting in Detah, I was told one applicant was turned down because their income exceeded the $77,000 income ceiling for program eligibility. That seems to lack realism. Suppose a household made $80,000, would they be any more able to buy a home in the private market in Detah? Some flexibility obviously is needed here.

The...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Minister knows full well that environmental remediation is a topic of the devolution negotiations. Out of the demolition of the roaster, possibly the most lethally toxic building in all of Canada, the adjoining stack contains 14 tonnes of arsenic trioxide that’s permeated with arsenic asbestos and other hazards. No news release, no media briefing, no explanatory advertising, no community information meetings, no attempts to inform the public and allay concerns for human health and environmental safety in this announcement. They just don’t learn.

When will this...

The Minister, obviously, isn’t addressing the questions here. There has certainly been debate for many, many years. The public has had a hard time and eventually got these hearings and made their views known. Now, as a government, we should be recognizing those. This statement doesn’t.

Again, I’ve made the point in past statements that it would, almost certainly, if it was a new mine, be governed by a legally binding environmental management agreement such as we see for the diamond mines, transboundary water agreements, and so on. The Giant Mine Project is far from new. It’s a toxic legacy of...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I also would like to recognize the students taking the course on Canadian Social Welfare Policy, Kelly and Jacq. I would also like to recognize the instructor Susan Fitzpatrick, a resident of Weledeh.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I will follow up on my remarks yesterday about Weledeh small businesses with a specific example of Weledeh enterprise and success.

From his home workshop in Detah, David Giroux is the owner, inventor, manufacturer, marketer and driving force behind Arctic Fire Stoves. The stoves are constructed of recycled fuel drums and salvaged steel, an environmentally sound repurposing of existing materials. This is the Cadillac of barrel stoves, and experienced people say they have never seen anything like them. It is the only model that can be used for heating as an oven, a...

Thanks for those details. Is this something we do on regular intervals? How long does this last? Has there been any change in the longevity of the efficiency or the resilience of this treatment?